ESPN's Cowherd predicts Seahawks-Pats Super Bowl

Any Seahawks fans lamenting their team's perceived lack of national respect should hear what ESPN's Colin Cowherd told "Brock and Salk" on Wednesday.

Cowherd, host of "The Herd" on ESPN Radio, had plenty of positive things to say about the Seahawks during a nearly-12-minute conversation that you can listen to here.

Where Seahawks rank. Cowherd thinks the Seahawks are the NFL's second-best team, and he had them ranked that high before they scored at least 50 points for the second consecutive week. A panel of five ESPN colleagues unanimously had the Seahawks at No. 7 in their latest power rankings. The Seahawks' relative lack of success as a franchise hurts their credibility, Cowherd thinks.

ESPN's Colin Cowherd thinks rookie Russell Wilson can take the Seahawks to the Super Bowl this season. (AP)

"If they were called the Steelers and they did as many things well as they did we'd love them. But they're called the Seahawks, so nobody wants them to give them any credit. This team has been fantastic," he said.

Super Bowl-bound. Cowherd's Super Bowl prediction has the Seahawks and Patriots squaring off in a rematch of the Week 6 game Seattle won at CenturyLink Field. He's sticking with that forecast even after watching the 49ers beat the Patriots in Foxborough in Week 15.

Cowherd likes the Seahawks to win their remaining two regular-season games, including Sunday night's showdown with the 49ers. He thinks Seattle's aggressive defense will force Colin Kaepernick, San Francisco's second-year quarterback, into some critical mistakes.

Wilson is 'that good'. Count Cowherd among those who didn't see Russell Wilson's stellar rookie season coming. He did say, however, that he was in awe of Wilson's intelligence when he watched the quarterback play years ago as a freshman at North Carolina State.

"We're going to get very used to saying 'Seattle Seahawks playoffs' over the next eight years with Russell Wilson. He is that good," Cowherd said.

Questions about Wilson's height led to Cowherd's initial skepticism. Cowherd still thinks Wilson might be more effective while throwing outside of the pocket because of his height, a subject we tackled two weeks ago.

Critiquing, crediting Carroll. Attention to detail is one area in which Cowherd thinks Seahawks coach Pete Carroll has fallen short. He referenced that critique a few times but didn't elaborate. My assumption is that he was referring to some of the mistakes Carroll has admitted to making during games. His decision to eschew a chip-shot field goal in a loss to Cincinnati last season is one that comes to mind.

Cowherd does appreciate Carroll's willingness to evolve. Cowherd's view is that while machismo often prevents coaches from changing their styles, Carroll has shown an ability to adapt to a changing game.

In the video below, Mike Salk shares some thoughts on Cowherd's prediction that Seattle will reach the Super Bowl.